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Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla and Space X and owner of X who has thrown his support behind Republican Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, has already donated at least $70 million to support the former president. He has now pledged to give away $1 million to voters who sign a petition from his political action committee endorsing the Constitution.
This giveaway has raised concerns among some election experts who argue that it may violate the law by linking a cash reward to signing a petition that requires voter registration. Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, a former attorney general, expressed his worries about the plan on Sunday.
“I think there are real questions about how he is spending money in this race, how the dark money is flowing, not just into Pennsylvania, but apparently now into the pockets of Pennsylvanians. That is deeply concerning,” he said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Let’s take a closer look at what is happening:
What is Musk doing?
Musk announced on Saturday that he would be giving away $1 million each day leading up to the November 5 election to individuals who sign his PAC’s petition in support of the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech, and the Second Amendment, which grants the right to “keep and bear arms.” He presented a check to a man named John Dreher during an event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. A message left for Dreher was not returned on Sunday. He also awarded another check on Sunday.
What is the broader context here?
Musk’s America PAC has launched a campaign in Pennsylvania, a crucial battleground state in the upcoming election. He is working to register voters in support of Trump, whom Musk has endorsed. The PAC is also focusing on persuading voters in other key states. This is not the first time the organization has offered cash incentives. Musk has previously stated on X (formerly known as Twitter) that he would pay $47, and then $100, to individuals who refer others to register and sign the petition.
During his campaign event in Pennsylvania on Sunday, Trump was asked about Musk’s giveaway. He responded, “I haven’t followed that.” Trump mentioned that he frequently speaks with Elon and considers him a friend, describing him as great for the country.
What is the issue with the giveaway?
Some election law experts are raising concerns about Musk’s giveaway. Campaign finance lawyer Brendan Fischer stated that the current form of the giveaway may be approaching a legal boundary as the PAC is requiring voter registration as a condition to be eligible for the $1 million check. “There would be few doubts about the legality if every Pennsylvania-based petition signer were eligible, but conditioning the payments on registration arguably violates the law,” Fischer said.
UCLA Law School political science professor Rick Hasen pointed out a law that prohibits paying individuals for registering to vote or for voting. He explained, “If all he was doing was paying people to sign the petition, that might be a waste of money. But there’s nothing illegal about it. The problem is that the only people eligible to participate in this giveaway are those who are registered to vote, which makes it illegal.”
Northwestern University’s Pritzker School of Law election law professor Michael Kang highlighted that the timing of the giveaway so close to Election Day makes it challenging to argue that the effort is not incentivizing voter registration.
A message requesting comment was left with the PAC on Sunday, as well as a request for comment from the Justice Department.
Can the PAC and Trump’s campaign coordinate?
In the past, coordination between campaigns and super PACs was prohibited. However, a recent opinion by the Federal Election Commission, which regulates federal campaigns, allowed candidates and these groups to collaborate in certain circumstances, including voter turnout efforts.
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